Let's Talk About Things 3
I'll say it: Things 3 is probably the most beautiful task manager ever made. The animations are buttery smooth. The gesture controls feel intuitive. Opening the app is a joy.
I used it for 18 months. Paid the $50 for iPhone, another $50 for Mac. Worth every penny for the design alone.
But here's what started bothering me around month 6: I had a perfectly organized list of tasks that was slowly killing me.
What Things 3 Does Brilliantly
Let's give credit where it's due:
- Design: Apple Design Award winner. Animations that make you smile. UI that gets out of your way.
- Apple Integration: Siri, Shortcuts, Widgets, Quick Entry from anywhere. It's native perfection.
- Headings & Areas: Organizational system that actually makes sense. Not overly complex like OmniFocus.
- Today View: Clean focus on what's due now. No overwhelming lists.
- One-time Purchase: No subscription anxiety. You own it.
If you're in the Apple ecosystem and want gorgeous task management, Things 3 delivers.
The Problem No One Talks About
Things 3's "Areas" feature is clever. You can organize by Life, Work, Family, etc. Seems like life balance, right?
Nope. Here's why: Areas are just folders. They don't show you balance. They don't warn you when Work has 47 tasks and Family has 2. They're organizational, not analytical.
I had a "Health" area. Know how many tasks I actually completed there? Almost none. Because Things 3 didn't care. It showed me all my tasks equally. Work tasks felt urgent. Gym tasks felt optional.
Six months in, my "Work" area was pristine. My "Health" and "Social" areas? Ghost towns.
How Funtasking Thinks Differently
Purpose Wheel: Every task goes into one of 8 life categories. But here's the key – we visualize the imbalance. You see a wheel. If Work is huge and Body is empty, it's obvious. Things 3 never shows you this.
Daily Timeline: Your day is color-coded by life area. Work is purple. Self-care is green. You can see instantly that you've scheduled 7 hours for work and zero for yourself. Things 3 shows "Today" – we show "Today's balance."
Gamification: Complete a 30-minute task? Earn 2 coins. Complete 10 tasks this week? Earn a reward you defined (massage, movie, fancy dinner). Things 3 has checkmarks. We have actual incentives.
The $100 Question
Things 3 costs $50 for iPhone, $50 for Mac. That's $100 total for the full experience.
Is it worth it? If you want pure task management beauty, absolutely. The design is unmatched.
But if you're buying it hoping it'll help you achieve work-life balance... it won't. That's not what it's built for.
Funtasking is free (premium coming soon). Because we believe preventing burnout shouldn't cost $100.
Design: Things 3 Wins (For Now)
Let's be honest. Things 3 has a 10+ year design head start. Their animations are smoother. Their gestures are more refined.
Funtasking is newer. Our design is good, not award-winning. But here's the thing: we're building different design priorities.
Things 3 optimizes for task entry speed. We optimize for life balance awareness. Their "Today" view is clean. Our Purpose Wheel is revealing.
Apple Ecosystem: Things 3 Wins
If you live in Apple's world (iPhone, Mac, iPad, Watch), Things 3 is seamlessly integrated. Siri, Shortcuts, Handoff – it all just works.
Funtasking has iOS and Web now, Android coming soon. We're cross-platform because burnout doesn't discriminate by operating system.
Who Should Choose Things 3?
- You're deeply invested in Apple ecosystem
- Design quality is your top priority
- You already manage life balance well manually
- You want a one-time purchase, no subscriptions
- You need project management with checklists
- You prefer minimalist, distraction-free design
Who Should Choose Funtasking?
- You're productive but feel unbalanced
- You keep neglecting self-care or relationships
- You want visual proof of where time goes
- You like gamification that feels meaningful
- You need cross-platform access (not just Apple)
- You want a daily planner focused on preventing burnout
Can You Use Both?
Some people use Things 3 for work projects and Funtasking for life balance. It's doable, but feels redundant.
The better question: What's your bigger pain point right now?
Need better task organization? Things 3.
Need to stop burning out? Funtasking.
The Switching Experience
Moving from Things 3 to Funtasking is straightforward. Export your Things tasks, recreate in Funtasking with life categories. Takes about 30 minutes.
The hard part isn't the migration. It's the mindset shift from "organize tasks" to "balance life." But that's exactly the shift that prevents burnout.
Final Thoughts
Things 3 is a masterpiece of task management design. If Cultured Code ever builds life balance features, we'll all be in trouble.
But they haven't. And honestly, I don't think they will. They're focused on perfecting task management. We're focused on preventing burnout.
Both are valid missions. Pick the one you need more right now.